Prepping for Australia
In one month, my daughter and I are flying to Melbourne, Australia, where I’m joining Ambelin Kwaymullina, Sharon Mosely, and Danny Oz as guests of honor at Continuum.
To say I’m excited would be an understatement. The Continuum folks I’ve talked to so far have been great, the convention looks like a lot of fun, and on top of that, it’s my first time to Australia. I’ve been looking forward to this trip all year, and will be taking a little extra time after the convention to look around a bit.
Now, I consider myself a well-educated person, but I have to admit that my knowledge of Australia is a little limited. Here’s what I do know:
- Everything is poisonous.
- Drop bears.
So I throw myself on the mercy of the internet. Help me, hive mind.
- What must I make sure to bring along?
- What kind of electrical conversion doohickey do I need to make sure Australia’s power grid (which I’m assuming is poisonous) doesn’t kill my stuff?
- What’s the best way to test for Iocaine Powder?
- Do I have to check my shoes for koalas every morning?
- What if I can’t find the “Australia” setting on my camera?
- How nasty are the foreign transaction fees on the credit card likely to be?
- Any tips for jet lag? (Right now, my plan is to try to stay up until bedtime on the first day to see if I can force my body into the new schedule. Either that, or just spend the whole time hallucinating.)
- Will customs let me bring Hugh Jackman home as a gift for my wife?
- Do wombats really poop in cubes? (Follow-up: Is cube-shaped poop poisonous?)
And what else should I know that I’m forgetting to ask about?
Katherine
May 7, 2014 @ 9:51 am
One thing to consider is that, being on the other side of the planet, Australia has opposite seasons to ours so you’ll be there in late-fall weather (though I’m sure their late fall is quite different from ours. . .).
Matt
May 7, 2014 @ 10:09 am
Be careful with those koalas. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZYgg8c6KQU#t=0m11s
Martin
May 7, 2014 @ 10:35 am
Concerning Iocaine Powder: Go back in time, consume in small but increasing amounts, build up some immunity ;-). Once you get that far, tests become redundant.
Lionel
May 7, 2014 @ 10:52 am
Jim, I’ve answered all your questions to the best of my ability on your G+ post. 🙂
Meagen
May 7, 2014 @ 10:54 am
Most of the cities in Australia are pretty tame when it comes to wildlife. The biggest adjustment to me when I studied abroad in Brisbane was getting used to the butt-ugly brush turkeys that kept breaking into our dorm and the fact that possums in Australia are actually adorable. You might be too far south to enjoy that sort of wildlife though.
A few other notes:
1) Don’t mess with Australian customs when it comes to bringing food into the country, even snacks from the plane. They are very no-nonsense about protecting their environment and they will not hesitate to fine you. Also, if you plan to go hiking and bring your own boots, those will probably be inspected.
2) You don’t need to buy a power adapter if the only electronics you’re planning to bring are a cellphone and/or laptop. The adapters on the charge cords can already adjust to the proper voltage. You just need to buy a plug adapter so that they will fit the power outlets. Check your laptop specs before you take my advice though.
3) Invest in sunscreen no matter how cold it is if you plan to spend a lot of time outside. Unless you have allergies, it’s better to buy sunscreen in bulk when you get there. A lightweight hat is handy too. And sunglasses. Definitely bring sunglasses.
4)If you are going to drive, be aware that kangaroos are the Australian equivalent of deer. Not sure what it’s like around Melbourne, but outside of Brisbane it was pretty common to see them crossing the road at night.
5)If you choose to venture outside of Melbourne, I highly recommend visiting the Great Barrier Reef! Sydney is pretty great too, especially if you enjoy old-fashioned pubs, monuments, and bats. Expect to deal with New York City prices though. Of course, I have a soft spot for Brisbane because I lived there, but it is truly a great city and they have a 24/7 pancake bar that’s inside an old cathedral. That’s right, I said pancake bar. Brilliant, no?
Jim C. Hines
May 7, 2014 @ 11:02 am
Thank you!
I’ll need to check the food rules closely. I need a source of carbs on hand for diabetes-related issues…
Jim C. Hines
May 7, 2014 @ 11:02 am
Thanks, Lionel!
Jim C. Hines
May 7, 2014 @ 11:02 am
An excellent plan!
Foz Meadows
May 7, 2014 @ 11:06 am
1. Coffee orders go by different names in Australia. Lattes and flat whites are the most common species; plus and also, it’s a different *type* of coffee to the US, as it’s generally made from fresh ground beans rather than left to stew in a pot.
2. Tipping is optional, because servers don’t rely on tips for their income. If you do tip, a few extra coins for a small purchase is generally acceptable, or 5-10% for a bigger meal.
3. If you order tap beer at a pub in Melbourne, it’ll come in a pint (big) or a pot (half that). However, should you be ordering beer with Australians from other states, a pot might also be referred to as a half, middy or schooner.
4. Possums are cute and fearless, but DO NOT FUCKING TOUCH THEM. They have claws like knives and diseases like an eighteenth century workhouse.
5. Do make use of the Melbourne trams, which are awesome. Also, as you’re a tourist, note that Swanston Street, which is the central street in the Melbourne CBD (Central Business District, or city centre) not only has trams, cyclists, trucks and buses whizzing past, but also horsedrawn carriages.
6. Wombats really do poop in cubes, but you’re unlikely to find any in the city, unless you go to the Melbourne Zoo. The visible wildlife is mostly birds – including lots of parrots, which I’m given to understand is a novelty for Americans. Notable species include: rainbow lorikeets, kookaburras, galahs (pink and grey), rosellas, cockatoos, magpies, currawongs, honeyeaters and, of course, crows, seagulls, doves and pigeons.
7. Aussie money looks like toy money compared to American notes, as it’s plasticky rather than papery. Re bank transaction fees, your bank in the US may well have a partner bank in Aus, like Westpac or the Commonwealth Bank, with whom you’ll have cheaper transactions and ATM withdrawals, so check that out.
8. Melbourne is fucking FANTASTIC for cheap, good food, especially Asian food. Sushi and Japanese cuisine abounds, as do Chinese, Indonesian, Thai and Malay. Lygon Street is famous for having about a billionty Italian/pizza joints on it, and there’s also a big Greek contingent (fun fact: Melbourne has the largest Greek population of any city in the world outside Greece).
9. There’s a great comic shop in the Bourke Street mall in the city called Comics R Us, which is girl-friendly, as you have your daughter in tow. Also check out JB HiFi a few doors up, which is a big games and DVD store with a lot of great stuff at famously cheap prices. And a bit further away down on, I think, Elizabeth Street, there’s a great SFFnal bookshop called Minotaur that’s worth checking out.
10. If you need power adaptors, they’re pretty easy to find at any hardware or electronics store, like Dick Smith or possibly even JB HiFi. Either way, it shouldn’t be hard.
11. You’re going at the start of winter, but Melbourne weather is famously mercurial, along the ‘four seasons in one day’ line. It could be warm one minute and pelting down sideways rain the next. Plan for variety.
ANYWAY! Hope you have a good trip! Shoot me an email/message if there’s anything specific you want to ask; I used to live in Melbourne and I’m an Aussie native, so I know the place pretty well 🙂
Jim C. Hines
May 7, 2014 @ 11:13 am
Super helpful, thank you! I don’t drink beer or coffee, but my daughter’s a coffee drinker, so I’ll pass that tip along to her.
And yes, parrots in the wild will be both awesome and a little boggling to see 🙂
Lionel
May 7, 2014 @ 11:33 am
Definitely schedule for a day at a zoo if at all possible. Royal Melbourne Zoo is the one closest to your hotel. Dunno if you’ll be driving here, but if so, we drive on the left side of the road, & if you’re brave enough to drive around your hotel, you’ll have to contend with Melbourne’s infamous ‘hook turns’, which are kind of hair-raising for even local drivers who aren’t used to them.
Lindsay Kitson
May 7, 2014 @ 12:02 pm
I stayed near Newcastle for about ten months. There are no snakes in australia that are not capable of killing you. Do not walk in tall grass. There are spiders everywhere. Some will kill you, some won’t. The daddy long legs are safe. The redbacks are not, and they’re very common, but not as aggressive as funnelwebs. Funnelwebs are the most dangerous because of their aggressiveness, and if you survive a bite, you generally never fully recover because it’s a nerve toxin. The biggest spider you’re likely to see would be the huntsman, who’s flat and tarantula sized, poisonous, but not deadly. Might make you puke, but won’t kill you. Terrifying as hell though. Not terribly aggressive. My mom screamed at one, and the australian present was like “Oh, pft, that one’s just a baby.”
The lizards on the other hand are mostly harmless.
Pam
May 7, 2014 @ 2:02 pm
According to Mira Grant there is a rabbit-proof fence that is currently being used to contain zombie kangaroos. You might want to add that to your “must see” list.
Nate McBride
May 7, 2014 @ 3:26 pm
Melbourne sounds like it has Virginia weather. I’d definitely be prepared for anything.
As for your question about jet leg, try to get some sleep on the flight over. That should help you with your plan to stay up until bedtime.
Also, if part of your post-convention plans involve going to Sydney, I highly recommend climbing the Sydney Harbor Bridge if you can. It is exhilarating.
sistercoyote
May 7, 2014 @ 5:43 pm
Sleep on the flight over, stay up until bedtime, and talk to your pharmacist/doctor about whether or not you can safely take melatonin, which will help tell your body it’s time to sleep when you do go to bed. (That last is a tip I was given by my sleep doctor to help me deal with my apnea-caused insomnia.) Oh, and also — if you can — avoid caffeine on the first day.
David Youngs
May 7, 2014 @ 10:01 pm
Try to find a copy of Bill Bryson’s In a Sunburned Country.
Ask your bank if they can get you a small amount of Australian money, especially some coins. You may suddenly need some in the airport. (I haven’t been there, but if it’s anything like Toronto…)
Also ask your bank and/or credit card company about extra fees for foreign transactions. In the US we get dinged an extra few (or more than few) percent on the conversion rate while the bank adds a fee for debit card withdrawals. Also, see if your credit card is widely accepted over there — there are a number of US cards that we haven’t heard of in Canada. Your contacts there can advise you.
If your electronic plugs don’t work, you can probably buy one cheaply. And ask you cell phone/internet providers what you should do about roaming.
Health insurance — ask whomever supplies yours. You’ll be a special case.
Morvidra
May 7, 2014 @ 10:12 pm
Tap your shoes on the floor before putting them on – easy way to dislodge any spiders.
If an animal is cute, remember it still has some way of defending itself. Koalas sleep in the tops of very tall trees in high winds, and they have claws like roofing nails.
Even in winter the Australian sun is no joke, and it is completely possible to get sunstroke while simultaneously freezing. Take an umbrella to be on the safe side – like they say, if you don’t like the weather in Melbourne, just wait five minutes.
And take anything an Aussie tells you about the wildlife or lifestyle while you’re here with a big grain of salt – we do love a good leg-pull. 🙂 Hope you enjoy your trip!
Vivienne
May 7, 2014 @ 10:43 pm
Agree with the sleep on the plane over, then stay up until bedtime.
Don’t forget you need a visa to visit Australia. (It’s an easy, online application) My husband is a Kiwi, and just assumed that I, as a US citizen, didn’t need one the first time I visited. The Air New Zealand agent was great and got it for me when we checked in, but, man, those Quantas agents in Sydney gave me a hard time!
Sarah M.
May 7, 2014 @ 11:06 pm
We spent a couple weeks in Australia a few years ago, so I am by no means an expert, but I do like to travel internationally, so here’s some stuff I’ve learned in general.
Cash: Don’t worry about getting Australian money from your bank ahead of time, but do find out what ATM networks your bank uses. The logos should be printed on the card. When you land in the airport, use an ATM to get walking around money. Australian banks didn’t use to charge fees for out-of-network users, but that may no longer be true. see here Make sure that your bank won’t charge you another fee for using a foreign ATM: either an access fee or a currency exchange fee. If they do, seriously consider changing banks. That’s not acceptable in my book. As a matter of fact, there are banks that not only don’t charge out of network fees but will reimburse you for any fee the ATM bank charges you. That’s the kind of bank account you want.
Credit cards: Call your credit card company to let them know you will be traveling in Australia (so that they don’t deactivate your card as they suspect fraud). Take two different credit cards, preferably from two different providers (eg, Visa, MasterCard, AmEx) in case your primary card does have issues. Carry them in separate places, in case you get pickpocketed. While you are on the phone, check what exchange fees they charge. Keep in mind, there may be two separate fees, one charged by the issuer (Visa) and one charged by the bank. You want to know the total. There are cards out there with zero transaction fees. If you have time to get one, it may be worth it. Here’s a list
Cell phones: Check with your cell phone provider to find out their voice, text and data rates in Australia. T-mobile has the best international plans I’ve seen (unlimited data and texting, 20 cents per minute for calls). If your rates are exorbitant, and your phones are unlocked, you may consider buying a prepaid SIM card once you land so you and your daughter can text each other. We found that to be the easiest way to keep in touch while we were separated for the day. If you don’t have an unlocked phone, you may be able to pick up a cheap burner phone there.
Health: According to the CDC, it looks like they really only recommend Hep A vaccine. You may want to go have a consultation with a travel doctor to see what they suggest. Also check with your insurer to make sure you are covered for anything international. You can get a traveler’s health insurance policy if you aren’t.
Power cords: As others have said, you probably won’t need a transformer, just a plug adapter, since most chargers can accept 220V, but check your devices to be sure. Also, I’d bring a mini power strip, if I were you. Then you can use one plug adapter and charge all your devices at the same time.
Visa: You need one to get into Australia. You can apply on line.
Other: They have the coolest bats there. Make sure you go outside at dusk to see these things the size of a housecat flying around. Really amazing.
Sarah M.
May 7, 2014 @ 11:18 pm
Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that you should also let your bank know that you are going to be using your ATM card internationally. Again so that they don’t deactivate it. If you are planning on driving, I’d suggest you call your insurance agent too, just to make sure you are covered for international driving. If you can avoid driving, do it. They drive on the wrong side of the road there.
Jet Lag: Going there will probably be easier than coming home. Try to force yourself onto the local time as soon as possible (stay up through the first day, if you can, and go to bed at a normal time). Sleep on the plane as much as you can. A facemask looks incredibly dorky, but it does help cut down on germs on the plane and it also keeps you a bit more hydrated (you are breathing in the moisture you just exhaled). Eye masks and earplugs can also be really helpful in shutting out the world and helping you sleep.
silence
May 7, 2014 @ 11:52 pm
If you want to check the advice given to another author there’s comments here:
http://terribleminds.com/ramble/2013/08/12/tell-me-everything-you-can-about-traveling-to-australia/
David Youngs
May 8, 2014 @ 12:20 am
And you’ll need a passport or something equivalent to get back into the USA.
Chloe
May 8, 2014 @ 1:56 am
Mostly we’re concerned about fresh fruit and vegetables so packaged stuff is generally ok but I would consider taking a doctors note that says you need to have food, and contact quarantine directly to see if your food is ok.
Karen
May 8, 2014 @ 3:19 am
I had to look up drop bears because I didn’t know what they were. It’s sad.
Do bring a coat. Do layer. June is the start of winter over here, and Melbourne is known for its four seasons in one day.
If you’re using credit cards – Visa and Mastercard are fine, but Amex and Diners often incorporate an extra surcharge (2-3%) when you use them.
Look both ways when you cross the road. It’s really hard to get your head around at first, but the direction you are looking for cars is not the way the cars will be coming. Seriously, look both ways.
Electricity here is 230 volts/50Hz.
If you’re staying around Melbourne, you might find a possum and some bats in the Botanic Gardens. (Or if you want to see them up close come down to my place, come down and see the little b…’s (sorry, darlings, they’re so cute) come round to my place. It’s only a couple of months ago that the possums, bats and cockatoos between them stripped my fig tree in one night. And not long before that they stripped my peach tree in one night. Not that I hold a grudge, or anything.
If you want to travel further afield, try the Dandenongs or Great Ocean Road.
And vegemite. If you’re going to try it, don’t slather it on like jam. Do it like the locals do. Scrape on and scrape off.
Meera
May 8, 2014 @ 6:16 am
I live in Brisbane (visit, it’s awesome and way less cold than Melbourne!) and visit Sydney and Melbourne all the time. In no particular order:
Don’t worry too much about the venomous beasties – unless you’re tramping through long grass in the bush or sticking your hand up under stuff and in holes, you’re unlikely to disturb anything. But wild animals are still wild animals – a koala can scratch you, a roo can kick the shit out of you, possums and bats stink, and most snakes don’t fuck around in the venom stakes. Alas nothing compared to our current right wing government.
Our money is great! Visually distinct so you won’t mix up a yellow $50 (sometimes colloquially known as a pineapple) with a red $20 (a lobster). Plus it is plastic so if you accidentally wash it, no worries, still good as new.
No tipping is also great. Very confusing aspect of the US for visitors.
The lane ways in Melbourne CBD are great, excellent coffee shops and little boutiques and graffiti and interesting architectural details from old buildings built over and around each other.
St Kilda is nice for the beach view and fish and chips, although don’t go swimming there this time of year without a wetsuit
Dandenong Mountains will have beautiful bush land and a cute steam rain ride through it on Puffing Billy
Having flown all that way, a diversion to Sydney is well worth it – the Harbour is just stunning, the cliff walks around Coogee to Bondi, the Opera House, the Botanic Gardens, a ferry ride to Cremorne Point and Manly, Cockatoo Island. And Brisbane for a subtropical change, and the river, and the best beaches in the world.
Normal processed food is fine to bring in on the plane. Just don’t bring fruit in or a salami or something. Declare any food on the forms they give you and a customs agent will check it for you.
For me, jet lag going to the US was waaaay worse than coming back.
Sadly you will miss the great Australian rite that is a cricket match. Come back in summer next time! And have fun this time.
Jim C. Hines
May 8, 2014 @ 10:28 am
Thanks! Already entered a travel alert on the credit card, but you’re right I should let the bank know as well for the ATM card…
Jim C. Hines
May 8, 2014 @ 10:34 am
Got the passports. I’ll need to take care of the visas, though. Thanks!
Marina Finlayson
May 8, 2014 @ 8:56 pm
How exciting! Hope you have a wonderful time. Melbourne is a lovely city — and I say that even though I live in Sydney, Melbourne’s traditional rival. It’s nicely laid out with wide streets and lots of trees and some interesting architecture. The trams are fun if you’re not used to them, and there’s a free city circle line you can hop on and off whenever you like, which is very handy for tourists.
Your daughter might enjoy the aquarium and/or the zoo (not sure how old she is). If you go to Fitzroy Gardens you can see the cottage that Captain Cook (the guy who discovered Australia for the British) grew up in. It was moved from England and reconstructed there.
If you have time to get out of Melbourne, a drive down the Great Ocean Road offers some spectacular scenery eg the Twelve Apostles. Very cold though! Even in Melbourne it’ll be quite nippy at this time of year — it’s nearly winter.
Of course Sydney is much prettier (I have to say that!) but it sounds like you’ll only by in Melbourne. Maybe next time?
Don’t worry about the poisonous everything — you’re no more likely to meet anything venomous in Melbourne than you are in any American city. The only natives you might have to worry about are kangaroos, if you drive out of the city eg to the Great Ocean Rd. They come out to feed at dusk and don’t have two brain cells to rub together, so are rather prone to leaping out of nowhere in front of your car. But that’s only in rural areas.
Virginia
May 8, 2014 @ 9:04 pm
Hi!
Lots of good advice above. I live in Melbourne, travel to US regularly, so worth reiterating:
Do not bring any meat or dairy into Australia. Even if its processed, its going to end up in the bin at Tullamarine (the name of the International Airport at Melbourne). Same goes for any fresh fruit or vegies.
Sweets, chocolate, carbs? You will be fine as long as they are in a sealed, commercial package. Even dried processed fruits or fruit juices are ok if sealed. Anything that you open on the plane? Leave it on the plane. Yeah, you can talk your way through customs with an open packet of lollies or chips. But really, its not worth the time. Turn up to quarantine and be be confident that nothing is fresh, nothing is from an animal (or seeds from plants- don’t take pepitas) , and its all sealed- they will happily wave you into the green lane.
Here is a site for you:
http://www.daff.gov.au/biosecurity/travel/cant-take
Animals: go for a walk at dusk to see the bats, and after dusk the possums come out in the parks. There are still wild parrots in the suburbs this time of year, but you are unlikely to see them in the city centre. Visit the Melbourne zoo for the only spiders and snakes you will see in the city. Enjoy the koalas, kangaroos, and fairy penguins while you are there. Take a trip out to the Healesville Sanctuary for more Australian native animals.
All the ATM’s at Tullamarine have extra fees attached. Wait until you are in town and can find an ATM partnered with your bank to get cash. ( I’m sure Continuum will be organising a pick up for you from the Airport, if they aren’t, ask them to! There are lots of us that wouldn’t mind doing it)
Your credit/atm cards should have a symbol on them, or some paperwork asssociated with them, that says either ” Maestro” or ” Cirrus”. These are international bank transaction groups. Any card with either of these symbols will work anywhere in Australia.
Very few places in Melbourne will take either Diner’s or American Express, and if they do, it will cost. Only bring these cards as emergency backup, not your primary card.
Plug adaptors for Australia – Probably easiest to get online, or here in Melbourne. If you need it as soon as you are here, you could probably ask Continuum to arrange it and you could repay them?
Australian winter weather- bring layers. Shirt, sweater, thick sweater or fleecy- and just peel up or down as the temperature changes or you go indoors/outdoors. Wool berets or beanies and fingerless gloves can be commonly seen on people walking outside. You WILL be walking outside- there are very few connecting corridors/ indoor streets/tunnels like I’ve seen in other parts of the world.
The Weather Bureau is predicting a dry winter, so there may not be so much rain, but the temperatures will be cooler. You’ll be in Melbourne less than a month before the shortest day of the year, so you will not need sunscreen.
Best wishes!
Amy
May 8, 2014 @ 10:53 pm
Do not touch cursed opals. Or camp near crocodile infested waters.
Hespa
May 9, 2014 @ 4:05 am
And honey. Bringing honey into Australia is a definite no-no.
Hespa
May 9, 2014 @ 4:20 am
“The lizards on the other hand are mostly harmless.” Ahahahahaha. http://archive.uninews.unimelb.edu.au/view-48503.html
However! You are unlikely to meet any venomous goannas, red-backed spiders, snakes (even non-deadly ones like the gorgeous white-lipped snake) or even the beautiful huntsman in the city or inner suburbs. Especially not the funnelweb, which only lives in NSW.
And yes, wombat poo is cube-shaped, and usually seen neatly piled on top of a rock, stump or other high spot as a message to any other nearby wombats!
Susan
May 9, 2014 @ 7:44 am
It’s been a while since I traveled abroad, but I found that some batteries commonly available at home were almost impossible to find abroad.
What kind of batteries does your insulin pump use? Can you carry spares? (yes, even if it uses rechargeable batteries, can you bring spares to swap in if the primary set will no longer take a charge?)
Jim C. Hines
May 9, 2014 @ 7:49 am
Oh, yes. I always carry at least one extra AAA battery for the insulin pump! 🙂
Jim C. Hines
May 9, 2014 @ 10:49 am
Thanks for this! The link is particularly helpful, and all of the foodstuff should be packaged and sealed, so hopefully we’ll be just fine.
Virginia
May 12, 2014 @ 12:29 am
In case you haven’t found it/been told about it already, here is another site that may be useful:
http://www.bom.gov.au/vic/forecasts/melbourne.shtml
This link is directly to the Melbourne forecast for the next week, but if you dig around the site you can find forecasts for other parts of Australia, radar images, and archival weather records. It is a Government site, but they are trialling a small amount of advertising “that fits with the image of the department”
Mel
May 12, 2014 @ 6:35 am
May has already gotten relatively cool for Melbourne this time of year and it’s been wet on and off, so I’d expect rain (though hey, Melbourne could turn sunny and warm again just to spite me on that). For example today it’s about 17 Celsius (62 F) and is meant to be around 60-70 the rest of this week. Melbourne doesn’t get really really cold though. Anything below about 13C/55F is considered getting pretty cold for a winter day. Colder at night.
Wear sunscreen if you are pale skinned/burn easily. We don’t have an ozone layer really in Australia, so you will burn much faster than you would in the US and the UV exposure is higher. Skin cancer is not fun. Even if it’s cloudy you can burn.
I second/third what everyone else has said about not really likely to encounter any of the dangerous critters in Melbourne if you stay away from woodpiles (which is where a redback might hangout). If you want to use the public transport system in Melbourne, it’s not terribly tourist friendly in terms of buying the Myki card you need (and they don’t refund when you leave – it’s a stupid system but the fines for not having a ticket are high), so that might be something to ask the Continuum folks to hook you up with. Someone there can buy a spare Myki or two and you can just give it back to them at the end of your trip. It’s easy enough to top them up with more money at the train stations. You can’t do it on trams though.
There is a free tourist tram that goes around the main grid of the Melbourne CBD. http://ptv.vic.gov.au/route/view/1112
The Melbourne Zoo has Aussie animals for a fix.
In terms of an adapter, I recommend seeing if you can buy one in the US. I’ve found that usually in the country you are headed to they are more likely to sell adapters for that country’s plugs to go into the foreign countries sockets than the reverse. ie here in Aus, it’s much easier and cheaper to buy an adapter for an appliance with an aussie plug to go into a US socket than for a US plug to go into an Aussie socket (I’ve had to do both). Aussie plugs are shaped like the prongs on this adapter http://www.amazon.com/Tmvel-Universal-Grounded-Adaptor-Adapter/dp/B007Z3QYEG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1399889534&sr=8-3&keywords=travel+adapter+australia.
The only thing I would check is your laptop but usually that should be fine with just an adapter, not a transformer. Hotels usually have special sockets for razors as those can be troublesome. I’ve never had trouble using Aussie laptops in the US with just an adapter.
Aussie hotels often still charge for in-room internet. And charge a lot. There’s usually free Wifi around somewhere but again, maybe check with the Continuum peeps if they are putting you up in a hotel as to what the deal is at that hotel. I second the need to maybe get a sim here for your phone as my experience with data charges on an Aussie phone going to the US is that they are ridiculous and I’d assume the reverse is true. There are travel sims with data plans that you can get for various countries that are reasonable, so that is worth investigating. Texting is usually the safest option but that gets annoying if you’re out and about and want to look something up on your phone.
You can get AAA batteries here (at least I’m assuming our AAA is the same as yours). I second looking both ways as that gets me in the US. And although you’ll see lots of people doing it, be aware that jaywalking will get you something like $150 fine if a police officer sees you doing it in the Melbourne CBD.
The food scene in Melbourne is fabulous and you will be able to get almost anything you want at various price points. Though generally the cost of things here is higher than the US for food/clothes/entertainment etc, so you may get sticker shock. A coffee would cost about 3.50-4. But so will a bottle of Coke/soft drink. A paperback book is about $20. Stock up the ereader! Though the Aussie dollar is down against the US at the moment, so that goes in your favor.
As others have said, you don’t have to tip at restaurants and cafes but if you are going somewhere nicer or that’s given good service, then 10% is the standard tip that Aussies leave if they are tipping. You don’t have to tip cabbies, hotel people etc.
Winter is Australian Rules football time in Melbourne, so if you’re sports inclined, that’s another thing to check out. The Melbourne Museum is good, so are the galleries if that’s your thing.
Jim C. Hines
May 12, 2014 @ 8:24 am
Hadn’t found that, thank you! Now I just need to remember my C/F conversion… 😉
Joleen
May 12, 2014 @ 8:24 pm
As someone who can win any “pale-off” contest, I highly recommend that you purchase sunscreen as soon as possible after arrival. The stuff from the US doesn’t even come close to the effectiveness of the stuff you can buy in Australia, which is way thicker.
As a fun thing to do, I took a camel-back tour of wineries with a hen party, and it was awesome.